Lord Truscott: The Government examined the case on cat and dog fur and concluded that the way in which these animals were treated to obtain their fur was unacceptable. We successfully called for EU-wide action as this will be more effective than national legislation.
	The UK strongly supported the European Commission's animal welfare action plan published in 2006. The ban on the import, export and sale of cat and dog fur was one of the first measures announced under it. We are currently working to ensure that the proposed legislation will be effective in line with the Government's Better Regulation Agenda.
	Within the WTO DDA Agricultural negotiations, "non-trade concerns" are recognised. This could include animal welfare provisions, but there has as yet been little discussion on this. However, the UK continues to work on this issue in other fora. The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) that has traditionally set guidelines on animal health has agreed its first ever codes on animal welfare.

Lord Rooker: The single intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin (SICCT) test, commonly known as the tuberculin "skin test", is the primary screening test for TB in cattle in Great Britain and other parts of the European Union (EU). The skin test, which is used throughout the world to screen cattle, other animals and people for TB, is the internationally accepted standard for surveillance for infection with mycobacterium bovis and is considered the best screening test currently available for detecting TB in live animals.
	No diagnostic test is 100 per cent accurate, but the current skin test is effective. Published research from studies around the world shows that skin testingwill detect approximately 80 per cent of all infected cattle (at standard interpretation). This is known as the test's sensitivity. Occasionally, reactions to the tuberculin test can be caused by exposure to other mycobacteria; when the skin test is applied to cattle without TB, there is a one in a 1,000 chance that a non-infected animal will be wrongly classified as a reactor. This is known as the test's false positive rate. An alternative way of defining this is to say that the skin test has a specificity1 of 99.9 per cent.
	In October 2006, the Government extended the use of the gamma interferon blood test, alongside the skin test (as permitted by EU legislation), to improve the sensitivity of the testing regime for controlling disease in infected herds by identifying more infected animals more quickly. It is being applied mainly in herds disclosing TB infection in low risk areas to help ensure infection does not become established in cattle or wildlife. It will also continue to be available for use as a disease control tool in areas of higher incidence. In line with recommendations from the scientific community, Defra continues to fund further research into improved diagnostics for bovine TB.
	The cost to government of cattle testing in Great Britain for 2004-05 was £36:4 million and for 2005-06 it was £36.7 million. These costs include: tuberculin costs, arranging, assessing and monitoring tests, conducting investigations of incident herds and meeting the costs of private vets—local veterinary inspectors—who carry out most of the TB testing work. The cost to government of surveillance activity by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency, which includes tuberculin costs, was £4.9 million in 2004-05 and £7.5 million in 2005-06. We cannot provide an estimate of "indirect costs", which are difficult to define, although we certainly acknowledge that the farming industry also incurs costs to support the TB testing programme.
	Compensation paid for TB reactors and contact animals compulsorily slaughtered across Great Britain in the past four years is shown in the table below. Figures include salvage money received by the Government for those carcasses permitted to go into the food chain or eligible for the over 30-month scheme.
	
		
			 Year 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 
			 Compensation paid (£ million) 31.9 34.4 35.0 40.4 
		
	
	1 Specificity is the ability of a test correctly to identify non-infected animals identified as negative (the higher the specificity the lower the probability of false positives). Sensitivity is the proportion of infected animals detected as positive (the higher the sensitivity the lower the probability of false negatives).No diagnostic test, including the tuberculin test, is totally accurate, ie 100 per cent sensitive and 100 per cent specific, as there is a trade-off between these two properties.

Lord Triesman: There are a number of reasons for the decline in the number of Chevening scholarships awarded since 2003-04. The introduction of the Chevening Fellowship scheme in 2004-05 changed the focus of the overall programme and diverted funds from the scholarship scheme. A rationalisation of sponsorship schemes has led to a decrease in numbers of scholars and co-sponsorship funding as schemes that no longer meet objectives have fallen away. Inflation has also raised the costs of the programme as a whole. A new Director of Chevening Sponsorship has recently been appointed to seek new partners for co-sponsorship of scholarships.

Lord Adonis: The department commissioned a review of What works in parenting support? A review of the international evidence in 2004 1. This report has been very influential in both policy and practice. The report notes that intervention with parents by various professionals can be successful. The department has commissioned further research to look in more depth at parental support.
	As part of the Government's reforms of the children's workforce, the common core of skills and knowledge has been developed and in conjunction with national bodies, is being incorporated into national occupational standards. The common core specifies the skills and knowledge that all those who come into regular contact with children, young people and families should have. The common core was consulted on extensively and parenting groups were involved in its development. Social Workers must also sign up to a code of practice that sets out how they work with service users. This means that those working with parents and children are required to respect their rights and promote their independence while also protecting from harm.
	1 *DfES Report and Brief 574: www.dfes.gov.uk/research/data/uploadfiles/RR574.pdf
	www.dfes.gov.uk/research/data/uploadfiles/RB574.pdf

Lord Hylton: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether their representations on behalf of Mrs M T Nlandu have been successful in securing her release from custody in the Democratic Republic of Congo and access to necessary medical care.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: The total cost of the Family Resources Survey was £3.7 million in 2005-06 and £3.8 million in 2006-07.
	The survey sample aims to cover private households across the whole of the United Kingdom. The original sample chosen for 2005-06 consisted of 50,000 addresses. In total, 28,000 households participated fully with the survey. All members of each participating household were interviewed either in person or by proxy. This represented 64,000 individuals of all ages.
	The consortium of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) provides training to its interviewers and refresher training. The training is usually in the form of a one-day event consisting of presentations and a run through the interview questions in the computer-assisted personal interview. Each interviewer, either from ONS or NatCen, uses their own approach on the doorstep to secure an interview and use their own purpose leaflets. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) supplies a purpose leaflet and has a page on its website for those asked to take part in the survey which provides useful further information.
	Results of the survey were published on the DWP website on 27 March 2007.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: The Government are supporting the NHS cord blood bank with approximately £10 million which involves collection from Barnet General, Northwick Park and Luton and Dunstable Hospitals and soon Watford General Hospital. Comprehensive information about cord blood banking, and its clinical use, is provided to inform mothers at these hospitals. These hospitals have been selected as they are in areas of greater ethnic diversity. Approximately 40 per cent of samples are collected from black and minority ethnic mothers thus improving the coverage of the NHS cord blood bank.
	The Government are also supportive of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, which has provided advice and guidance to professionals and mothers about private cord blood collection. In particular, the Government endorse the advice to National Health Service trusts to consider local policy around private and other cord blood banking, and in particular to maximise the safety of the mother and baby. For this reason, the NHS cord blood bank employs additional staff to undertake cord blood collection in order not to burden the local midwife with additional responsibilities.
	The Government have also noted the recommendation of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists to consider the future funding infrastructure for cord blood banking in light of future developments.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: National Health Service organisations are required to monitor implementation of the knowledge and skills framework (KSF) as part of the Agenda for Change agreement. Data are reported to the NHS Staff Council quarterly.
	Funding for training is included as part of the baseline allocation to strategic health authorities (SHAs). How it is utilised is for individual SHAs to determine against their workforce planning strategies.
	A national working group to include senior trades union representation has been established to re-launch and revitalise the KSF to ensure that all NHS staff paid under Agenda for Change have a yearly development review based on the KSF resulting in a personal development plan.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: Between March 2000 and December 2006 the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has published a total of 75 technology appraisals of pharmaceutical products, including reviews of existing appraisals. From this total, 15 appraisals covered one or more pharmaceutical products that have been awarded orphan drug status by the United States of America's Food and Drug Administration or the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products, for the treatment of conditions affecting fewer than 200,000 persons in the USA or fewer than five per 10,000 persons in the European Union. Of these:
	four appraisals recommended routine use within the licensed indications of the products being appraised (27 per cent);10 recommended the use of some but not necessarily all the drugs being appraised for use by specific patient groups (66 per cent); andone recommended use in the context of further research (7 per cent).
	Of the remaining 60 technology appraisals:
	19 appraisals recommended routine use withinthe licensed indications of the products being appraised (32 per cent);40 recommended the use of some but not necessarily all the drugs being appraised for use by specific patient groups (67 per cent); andone recommended use in the context of further research (one per cent).
	Percentages are rounded to the nearest 1 per cent.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: The Government do not collect figures of the quantity of cord blood collected across the United Kingdom. However, the British Bone Marrow Registry also contains information about the number of units banked in Northern Ireland (189). Scotland is now planning to set up a cord blood bank but there is nothing in Wales so far. The NHS cord blood bank has collected more than 9,000 cord blood samples for clinical purposes since it started in 1996. Since 2005 it has collected 4,554 samples, of which 2,615 were banked indicating that 42 per cent of collected samples were discarded. This is consistent with the rates in other countries and is caused by a variety of reasons such as small volume, incomplete information from the mother or bacterial contamination. The units that cannot be banked may be made available for research if the mother has given her consent.
	There are no central records of patients who go abroad for cord blood transplantation. If National Health Service patients require a cord blood transplant which is not available in the NHS cord blood bank it can be imported from a suitable overseas bank for NHS treatment. The Government are aware that some UK patients travel abroad to undergo experimental or private procedures.

Lord Brabazon of Tara: The Commons Refreshment Department took the decision recently to cease the purchase of fair trade bananas. As a result, the Lords Refreshment Department will be unable to procure fair trade bananas from the Commons. The Lords Refreshment Department investigated alternative supply routes and identified a potential supplier. The supplier proposed purchasing terms that would have required the House to order a minimum of 18 to 19 kilogrammes of fair trade bananas per delivery. This is three times in excess of the House's daily needs and would have resulted in significant wastage. The supplier was also unable to guarantee consistent quality and a regular supply of bananas.
	Based on this information, the department took the decision not to pursue the contract on the grounds that it would not prove cost-effective or meetthe practical needs of the House. The department continues to support the sale of fair trade products in its outlets and will explore other supply routes for fair trade bananas that become available.

Lord Rooker: There was no commitment made at St Andrews to introduce legislation relating to Ulster Scots; consultation on whether Ulster Scots shouldbe included in the Irish language legislation was therefore not considered appropriate.

Lord Marlesford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many of the 76,719,264 national insurance numbers currently held by the Department for Work and Pensions customer information system are those of deceased persons; what is their policy on retaining national insurance numbers of deceased persons; and what arrangements there are for the Registrar General to notify the department of deaths.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: There are approximately 16.5 million national insurance numbers held on the DWP customer information system which relate to deceased persons.
	At present, national insurance numbers are not removed if someone dies. This is because a partner may make a claim for a contributory benefit, which is dependent on the contribution record of the deceased individual. This means that the number of accounts held on the system accrues as national insurance numbers are allocated each year.
	DWP receives notifications of death from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for England and Wales, the General Registrar (Scotland) and the General Registrar (Northern Ireland) on a weekly basis. Dates of death are also received from next of kin in advance of notifications from registrars, particularly where social security benefits are in payment.
	As part of the ONS modernisation programme, dates of death will be notified to DWP on a daily basis from March 2008.

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will make representations to the Government of Vietnam about the recommendations made by the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, in its report VIETNAM: Twelve human rights defenders have the floor.